Russia filed charges Wednesday against Telegram founder Pavel Durov, accusing him of aiding terrorist activity. According to the allegations, the messaging app was used by Ukrainian intelligence services to recruit operatives and coordinate sabotage and terror operations inside Russia. An international arrest warrant has been issued against Durov, a Russian native who lives outside the country.
1+Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said Telegram was used “for the preparation and coordination of acts of sabotage and terrorism” inside Russia. The agency also claimed the app failed to remove channels, chats, and bots used by Ukraine for these purposes, thereby enabling continued hostile activity.
Shortly after the indictment was announced, Durov’s X account posted a photo of him raising a three-finger salute. Durov has previously accused Russian authorities of “inventing new pretexts to restrict Russians’ access to Telegram”—a sign of years-long tensions between the two sides.
1+Telegram is hugely popular in Russia and used by tens of millions of people, even as authorities restrict access to it as part of a broader crackdown on internet freedom. Durov has lived outside Russia for many years and holds French and United Arab Emirates passports. It’s unclear whether other countries or authorities will comply with Russia’s arrest warrant.